In between the horror of the second surge that is taking a deep toll on all of us, BCCI has decided to postpone IPL indefinitely when a few of their players tested positive for Covid-19.
IPL serves as a huge platform for advertisements and many a night is spent in media planning and buying; undoubtedly brands may be hurt financially but the impact runs deeper.
According to Mint, the broadcasting channel Star India announced in a statement:
“Star India supports BCCI’s decision to postpone IPL 2021. The health and safety of players, staff and everyone involved in the IPL are of paramount importance. We thank the BCCI, IPL Governing Council, players, franchisees and sponsors for their support. We are also indebted to our employees, on-air talent, production, and broadcast crews for trying their best to spread positivity by delivering the broadcast of IPL 2021 to millions of homes in the face of challenging circumstances.”
Star India faces the greatest impact as sponsors have no responsibility to reimburse the broadcaster for the tournament suspensions until matches are conducted. Small advertisers whose campaigns were to be broadcasted should be able to renegotiate their deals in an attempt to save their finances.
Chetan Asher, Founder & CEO of Tonic Worldwide highlighted the impact stating, “With the bio bubble breached and the current situation in the country, suspension of IPL was inevitable and probably the right thing to do. For advertisers, the impact will be in terms of redrawing their plans, redirecting their investments to other mediums, and maybe even evaluating if advertising investments allocated for IPL can be directed towards driving support and on-ground impact in worst-affected cities. More so, for first-time advertisers, they can be nimble, drive charge, and emerge stronger.”
Experts also believe that most brands will not be impacted heavily when it comes to branding because of the suspension. One will have to reallocate their budgets and rework their campaigns accordingly to be able to make up for the losses created by the suspension. The suspension also provides brands with the opportunity for teams and brands to unite and come up with campaigns to support the Public during the calamity and to help with relief in any way possible and many believe would have resounding effects.
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